Rail-joint bar or fishplate



April s, 1923.

G. w. MULLER RAIL JOINTBAR 0R FISH PLATE Filed April il 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet l L- atb/cmq April 3, 1928.

'1,655QT8 G. w. MULLER RAIL JOINT BAR 0R FISH PLATE Filed April 50, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Panarea Apr. 3, 192e.

lJl'I'ED@ STATES maite GEORGE W. MULLER, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICTOF COLUMBIA.

RAIL-Il' 01N T BAR 0R FISHPLATE.

Application led April 30, 1927. Serial No. 187,981.

The present type of rail'joint bars or ish plates as they are known in the art and now used as standard equipment by various railroads throughout the country for connectiiig adjacent rail ends have proven wholly inadequate and inetlicient and their defects have resulted in numerous and frequent disastrous railway wrecks.

The defects of the present rail joint bars consist in that they are too short and ot improper design and consequently they become loose and allow the rail ends to dip at the joints and batter at the ends of each rail a mound or hump usually forming in the ball of the rail at each end of the bar plate or just beyond the same resulting in the wheel load running down an incline as it approaches the joint and delivering a hainmering lick on the rail ends greater thanit would be if the rail ends were held level and on a line with the major portion of the length of the rail.

The continued travel of the wheels over the joint causes the ends of the rails to batter, or the top ball part of the rail to batter, some times split, break oil', crumble or break, thereby impairing the smooth tread surface of the rail at the travelof the Wheels thereover, such low spots in the rail length causing the train to sway and luiige from side to side and the wheel flanges kissing. and flapping against the side of the ball of the rail at the joint and the descent of heavy wheel loads falling into these low joint spots sets up a destructive vibration in the track rails and renders the upkeep of the joints extremely expensive.

Railroads at present are forced to expend annually considerable money in the maintenance of present type rail joints owing to the structural defects therein and the damaging consequences above stated. Although various attempts have been made to avoid these consequences as by removing the plates and sawing ofi the rail ends, building up the ball of the rail by electric and other welding processes, the solution of the problem has not as yet been presented.

A further defect in the present type rail joints consists in that the continual dipping and beating down of the joints forces the.

ties into the ballast or bed and in many places causes the joints to pump, that is, allowwater to run to the low bedpart where the ties are driven down and this condition hecomes worse from time to time until it is necessary to raise the track, clean out the ballast and refill the new ballast to build up the joint, all of which is obviously an added expense in the maintenance of the railway.

Many other defects are present injthese known rail joints and in many instances"`the bar is completely broken by excessive wheel lick hitting them at the joints resulting in derailments and broken wheel flanges or axles or otherparts of the locomotive or other rolling stock and in all it isa di'icult problem and one which deserves careful attention and the elorts of those skilled in the art to solve. t

It is the object of the present invention to provide a rail joint which will effectively overcome all of the objections to those now in use and which will reliably and rigidly maintain the balls of the rails in proper alignment for an unlimited period and minimize so far as possible railway wrecks due to imperfections or damage to the tracks. l A further object of the present invention is to provide a rail joint wherein the bulk ot' the metal constituting the joint bar is presented at the meeting ends of the rails, fitting under the ball of the rail and so constructed as to direct and distribute the pres sure or strain imposed at the 'oint to the proper point or points of rein orcement.

A further object is the provision of a joint bar of substantially pyramidal or arch shape at the medial portion constructed to hug and snugly fit at all times against the web and underside of the ball of the rail at the point where the rail ends meet and where the metal is mostly needed at the moment ot the wheel lick.

llhe invention has for a further object additional improvements in major and detail features of structure which all tend toward a perfection of rail joint structure calculated to vastly yimprove and render more eicient this important detail of the equipment of railways. y

In the accompanying drawings wherein a plurality ,of approved embodiments of the invention are illustrated:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of one form of my improved rail joint.-

Figure 2 is a horizontal longitudinal sectional view of the joint plate on one side of the rail showing the three point engagement of the joint bar with the web and also with the base flange of the rail.

Figures 3, 4 and `5 are vertical cross sectoV Figures 9, 10, 11 and 12 are vertical cross sections taken on the lines 9 -9, 10--10, 11-11 and 412-'12 of Figure 8. Figure 13 isa similar view taken onthe same plane ax j Figure 8, showing a modified form of the joint bar shown in Figure 8.

Figure 14 is 'a detail perspective view of one end of the joint bar shown in Figure 13.

Figure 15 is a vertlcal cross sectional view of the modified form` of the bars show n 1 n Figures 13 and 14, taken on the plane mdicated by the line 12-12'of Figure 'Fi re 16 is a view similar to Figure 2, showing one end ofa modified vform of the joint plate. I

According to the arrangement 1n Figs. 1 t6 5 each of the companion joint bars is formed considerably longer than those now in use as observation and experience has taught that the latter are not of suicient length to withstand the stress and strains to which they are subjected. Accordingly the improved overlie three medial portion 50 of veach bar bein lto :lit between the ball of the ra' and base and being gradually increased in thickness downward toward the rail base for the urpose specified and terminating in depen g iianges 51 partially embracing the rail base at its sides. The parts of the bar kbetween the medial rail engaging portion and the terminals of the bar are spaced rom the web bar is of a length to span an ties as shown in Fig. 1, the

and from the edge of the base iiange of the.

rail while the terminals of the bar are oset inwardly or constructed to engage and bear against the web of the rail as indicated at 52 in Figures 2 and 5, and against the edge of the base ange of the rail as shown at 52 in Figure 2.

The enlarged medial portion of the bar is preferably placed upon a tie plate 53 while the contiguous bar portions which lie in spaced relation vwith the rail web are increased in depth as indicated at 54 and apertured at 55 to accommodate bolts which may be usedY to increase the clampin eect on the rail ends and to improve the e ciency of the joint. The portions of the bar ,lying outwardly of the depending flanges 54 are appro riately shaped to overlie the adjacent ties w ile the extreme ends of the plates are again increased in depth and provided with inwardly projecting flanges 56 underlying s indicated by line 10-10 of,

arranged the base of the rail and embracing the same as shown in Fig. 5.'

The modification illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7 is of a construction similar to that illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5 except that the bar at each side of the rail is provided with an integral iiange underlying and extending laterally of the rail base A1z0-provide an integral tie platg thus ldispensing with the necessity of providingseparate tie platesv for the joint. According to the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 8 to 12 the joint bar is of such length as to span and overlie four ties in such manner that the laterally prominent medial por'- tion 60 ofthe -bar overlying the joint is located between two adjacent ties and this portion of the bar is provided with' a depending ange 61 apertured to accommodate abolt 62 by which the companion bars are securely bolted together. The flanges 61 are provided with aninward extension 64 underlying the rail base andthe portion of the bar lying outwardly of the medial portion 60 which is spaced from the rail web as shown inFig. 11 is provided with depending ianges 65 lying between adjacent ties to add additional strength to the bar and joint. The terminal portions 60 are arranged to bear againstthe rail web so as to set up a desirable resiliency tending to maint-ain the nuts on thebolts and also to maintain the medial portion of the bar snugly fitted and positioned under the ball of the rail, this d resiliency being setup, asv will beunderstood,

`by tightening the bolts which pass through that portion of the bar lying in spaced relation with the rail web.

Joint bars of the length herein described are found to be considerably more eiiicient than those of standard sizefnw in use and althou h the initial expense due to the additiona material required is somewhat greater than formerly, in the end the longer bars prove more economical from the standpoint of malntenance and reduction in wear and tear on railway equipment.

According to the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 8, 10 and 12 the portions of the bar overlying the ties are seated upon tie plates 67 but, 1f preferred, these portions of the bars may be provided with integral extensions 68 as suggested in Figs. 13, 14 and 15 to serve the purpose of tie plates.

Although in the various embodiments of the invention herein described and illustrated each joint is shown as comprising two plates, it will be readily understood that in a number of the 'embodiments it will be possi-` vble to dispense with one of the joint bars and body provided with a reinforced medial portion adapted to snugly fit between the ball and the base of the rail and against-the web thereof, and bearing flanges at the terminals of the bar adapted to bear against the rail web.

2. A joint bar comprising an elongated body reinforced at its medial porton to sniigly fit aganst the web and throat of the meeting ends of the rails and on top of the rail flange, the end portions of the bar being spaced from the web of the rail, the outer sides of the terminals of the bar extending downwardly below the flange of the rail and inwardly projecting flanges on said downwardly extending terminals, said flanges en- .gaging the underside of the base of the rail.

3. A joint bar comprising an elongated body, reinforced at` its medial portion to snugly lit against the web and throat of the rail ends and on top of the rail flange, the

yend portions ofthe bar being spaced from the web of the rail but engaging the web at their terminal portions, said terminal portions also extending downwardly below the flange of the rail, and inwardly projectng flanges on said downwardly extending terminals, said flanges engaging the un` derside of the base of the rail.

4. A joint bar comprising an elongated body having its central portion' thickened and adapted to lit snugly against the full height of the web of the rail, under a p0rtion of the ball of the rail and on top of i the rail flange and diminishing in thickness toward its terminals, a portion of the bar between its centre and each end resting on top of the rail flange, the outer edges of said ties and clear of the edges of the rail flange, said downwardly extending portions having apertures adapted to receive bolts, said bolts-passing beneath'the base of the rail.

5. A joint bar comprising an elongated body having a relatively thick central portion, the inner side of said thick portion snugly fitting against the web and the underside of the ball of the rail Vand on the flange thereof, the top edge of the bar sloping from said central thick portion toward the ends of the bar and spaced from the under side of .the ball of the rail.

6. A rail joint bar having a relatively thick middle portion and having cavities on its back side, whereby said bar bears at three points against the web of the rail.

7. A rail joint bar plate having a rela- .tively thick middle portion and reinforced on its outer side, said reinforcement increasing toward its bottom side, and having cavities on its back side whereby to bear. at three places against the web of the rail.

8. A rail joint bar including a body provided with an enlarged medial portion adapted. to snugly lit between the ball and base of a rail and against the web thereof,

the extremities of the bar being also adapted to bear against the web of the rail, the portions of the bar lyingvintermediatel the me.r

dial portion and the extremities bein normally spaced from the web, said space portions, having apertures adapted to receive clamping bolts. 9. A rail "joint bar including a body provided with an enlarged medial portion adapted to snugly fit between the ball and base of a rail and against the web thereof, the extremities of the bar being also adapted to bear against the web of the rail, the portions of the bar lying intermediate the medial portion and the extremities being normally spaced from the websaid spaced portions having apertures toreceive clamping bolts, and integral flanges formed on the lower edges of the bar and projecting beneath and inI engagement with the base of the rail.

. 10. AV rail joint bar having a relatively thick medial portion and downwardly extending flanges -on its lower edge, said vflanges being adapted to bear at three points Y against the edge ofthe base of the rail. portion extending downwardly between the three points against the web of the rail, and

downwardly extending flanges on the lower edge of the bar ada ted to bear at three poilnts against the e ge of the base of the rar.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature.

` GEORGE W. MULLER. 

